Definition of Life
by natashaheisenburg
Summary: How does one continue on living after seeing death a number of times? Hermione Granger must find out. On her way to discovering the answer, she comes across Tom Riddle, who might just be the one to lead the way. HG/TR, Time-travel


**Prologue**

Screams tore through the air, and spells shot in every direction. The war had been going on for months, but it was today that Hermione Granger hoped it would all end. She crouched down and took out the Death Eater in front of her; and by taking out, she meant killing him.

Gone were the days when her wand was set to stun, the days when a spark of innocence remained in her eyes, and the days she felt she was still living.

Because war and death—they came hand in hand.

Hermione sauntered over to the body sprawled on the steps of Hogwarts' entrance. She kneeled down and ripped off the mask. A small feeling of regret welled up in her chest as she gazed down at unseeing eyes of Theodore Nott.

She immediately squelched down the emotions rising in her chest. Now was not the time to become emotional. She had plenty of time to mourn later—when Voldemort was already dead.

"NO!" She heard somebody yell. Her head snapped up towards that direction.

Ron, Percy and Harry were crouching over a body and were shaking it. Hermione ran over towards them, deflecting a stray hex in her path.

"What hap…" her voice died in her throat as she noticed whose body it was.

Fred's.

It wasn't possible. Fred Weasley couldn't be dead.

"Fred! No, no, no!" Ron's scream, raw from emotion, made Hermione choke on a sob. She pried his hands off Fred's shirt and let him latch on to her. She'd never heard Ron cry before, and that was what made it ten times even more horrible.

Percy had stopped shaking Fred, and instead, buried his face onto his chest, all the while still calling his name.

The air suddenly exploded, and Hermione was wrenched away from Ron as she, Percy and Fred's body flew into the air and hit the brick wall. She heard a sickening crunch, which told her that one of her ribs have probably been broken.

Hermione spit out the blood that had come from accidentally biting the inside of her cheek. She was disoriented for the moment. Her vision had gone blurry, probably from her collision with the wall. She groped for her wand, and after finding it, raised it to defend herself.

To her right, Percy cast a notice-me-not ward around Fred's body. Something to his right caught his attention, and after squinting at the figure for a moment, his face contorted into an expression of pure and unadulterated hatred.

"ROOKWOOD!" he bellowed before sprinting towards the cloaked man.

Her vision had cleared and she saw Ron, with the same expression as Percy, rushing towards the Death Eater. Hermione dashed towards him and tackled him to the ground.

"LET ME GO, HERMIONE!" he screamed at her, tears still falling from his eyes.

"No, Ron! Please!" she pleaded with him. Hermione could see it in his eyes. He needed to get his revenge. He wanted to hurt them; make them feel the pain he was feeling now.

"HE KILLED FRED—I'LL KILL HIM—!" He was shaking with rage and grief.

"I know, Ron! But please! We—"

But he wouldn't listen. Ron pushed her away from him and she fell to the ground.

"NO! RON!" she shouted after him as he made his way over to where Rookwood and Avery were battling Percy. "Harry! Stop him!" she called to him, but he was nowhere in sight.

Hermione stood up and abruptly winced as a sharp pain came from her foot. She pointed her wand at it, _"Episkey!"_ and she felt the familiar sensation of warmth then cold as her ankle healed.

She pushed herself up and hastily made her way to where Ron was. He had killed Rookwood and Avery, and he was standing over their bodies. But where was Percy? Her eyes scanned the area and she saw a broken body sprawled on the gravel near Ron. Hermione averted her eyes from Percy's body, unable to look at him anymore, and rushed towards Ron.

"Ron." She placed a hand on his shoulder. He didn't acknowledge her, keeping his eyes on Percy's body. Tears were silently falling from his eyes and onto Percy's shirt.

She heard somebody scream a spell from behind her, and she whirled around her spot and ducked, barely avoiding the jet of green light sent her direction. Hermione scowled at the smug expression on Dolohov's face.

Hermione wondered for a moment what could've brought that sickening smile on his face, until she heard something fall onto the ground. And at that moment, she remembered just _who_ was standing behind her.

She felt as if she'd been plunged head-first into a pool of ice. Tears stung her eyes, but she didn't dare let them fall. Overcome with pain, grief and hatred, Hermione jabbed her wand towards his direction and shouted a spell she had never used before, _"Avada Kedavra!"_

Dolohov was too surprised to evade, and the curse hit him squarely on the chest. A few seconds later, Voldemort's cold voice—magically amplified—filtered through Hogwarts. Hermione tuned out what he was saying. It was most probably something to do with surrendering Harry over to them.

Like hell they would.

Hermione then took a deep breath and turned around. She could not hide from this. The Death Eaters have all retreated, and without anyone to battle, she had no distractions left. She closed her eyes and groped at the ground. She took hold of one of his arms, threw it across her shoulder and half-carried him. Harry met her mid-way, tears already falling from his eyes, and he helped her bring Ron to the Great Hall.

As soon as they had placed him on the table, she collapsed onto a bench, and Harry had given her a tight hug.

So many had already died; how many more? And finally, when she could no longer avoid it, she opened her eyes and looked at the still form of Ron's body on the table.

There was a lump in her throat that prevented her from swallowing properly. She broke away from Harry's hug, stood up and made her way towards Ron's body. Her lip quivered as she brushed his hair out of his eyes, eyes that would never again sparkle while he laughed, flash when he was angry or gleam when he was becoming mischievous.

Then, Hermione could no longer hold it in. She buried her face onto Ron's chest and sobbed, letting her emotions go wild for the moment. "Ron! Ron! Ron!" she called for him, wishing for him to answer, knowing already that he never would.

She barely registered Professor McGonagall giving her a hug, and the rest of the Weasleys grieving beside her. Her full attention was on Ron. She pleaded for his forgiveness. "Ron! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

If only she had let the curse hit her instead...

If only she had prevented him from going after Rookwood…

If only she had noticed Dolohov behind her earlier…

There were too many 'If only's'.

Hermione didn't know how long she stayed there and cried on Ron's chest. It felt like hours, but it couldn't have been more than a few minutes, since the Death Eaters have yet to attack, and Voldemort had promised them an hour.

She took a deep, shuddering breath and scanned the hall for Harry; he was nowhere in sight. Cold dread trickled down her spine as she thought of what he could possibly have done. Hermione jumped up from the bench, ignoring the surprised look Ginny sent her way, and ran out of the room in search of Harry.

On her way to the Headmaster's office, she bumped into someone. As she fell onto the ground, she pulled out her wand, ready to hex her assailant. But when she looked up, there was no one there. She furrowed her brows, then after a moment, understanding dawned upon her. With one swift move, she reached out and, upon feeling the silky material, clutched it and yanked it off, revealing a haunted and defeated-looking Harry.

"Why are you under the invisibility cloak?"

Harry didn't answer her. He merely stared at the floor.

"Why are you under the invisibility cloak, Harry?" she repeated.

He gave a barely discernible shrug. "I just—needed to get away from it all."

Hermione eyed her friend for a moment. He looked so defeated, helpless. She couldn't blame him, though; that was how _she_ felt as well. "Harry…" she stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.

She stifled a gasp when she saw his eyes. They were so empty. "Harry," she said. "You're not thinking of handing yourself over to Voldemort, are you?"

His eyes shifted to the left, and he murmured, "No, of course not, 'Mione."

"You're lying!" she accused. She stepped forward and drew Harry into a hug. "Please, don't Harry. I've already lost—lost Ron," she choked on his name. "I can't lose you too." She sobbed against him.

When they drew away from each other, Hermione was surprised to see tears flowing from Harry's eyes. "There's nothing I can do about it." He mumbled. "I have to."

"You don't _have _to hand yourself over to him, Harry!" she cried. "There's no point! It's a senseless death!"

Harry closed his eyes momentarily. "I wish I had a choice, Hermione." He opened them again and gazed at her sadly. "But I don't. I…"

"You're?"

Harry licked his lips. "There's a seventh Horcrux." He took a deep breath, lifted his hands and pushed back his hair to reveal his scar.

"What?" Hermione asked in confusion. "What does this have to do with your…" she trailed off as realization smacked into her with full force. She looked up at him, horrified. "No…" she whispered.

"To destroy the Horcrux, I…I have to die, Hermione." He gave a resigned sigh. "And even more, I have to die by Riddle's hand."

"But Dumbledore never said—"

"Dumbledore lied." Harry deadpanned. "He never cared. _Love_"—he sneered—"didn't save me. _Nothing _can. He led me…like a pig to slaughter." He laughed without mirth and then a sob tore from his throat as, this time, he initiated the hug and pulled Hermione to his chest.

"I'm so sorry, 'Mione. I'm sorry I have to leave you. I'm sorry I couldn't p-p-protect Ron. I'm sorry I have to die." He choked with grief.

Hermione let her tears flow freely. She couldn't believe it. Both of her best friends—the ones she'd been friends with for seven years were going to die on the same night.

Harry let her go and cupped her face in his hands. "I love you, 'Mione. You're like the sister I never had." He paused to wipe his tears on his sleeve. "And I want you to promise me something."

Hermione bit her lip to stop it from quivering. "A-anything."

"Don't lose your fighting spirit. I know it's easier said than done, but I want you to remain vigilant. I've already instructed Neville to kill Nagini." He looked at her seriously. "I know I'm asking too much of you. But…" he inhaled. "I want—no, need—you to be the one to finish off Riddle." Harry brushed the tears from her face as she nodded.

"I-I-I will. I promise, Harry. I'll finish the job."

"Disarm me." he said.

"What? Why?"

"Just do it."

Hermione raised her wand and disarmed him. When she offered him his wand, he shook his head. "You keep it, 'Mione. You're going to need it, I promise. Riddle can't harm you, now."

Harry kissed her forehead. And with a swirl of his cloak, he was gone.

"I love you, Harry." She wiped her tears off her face and steeled herself.

She had a job to do.

-Break break—

Hermione and Voldemort circled each other. Neville had already killed Nagini, and in turn, he'd been burned by Voldemort with Fiendfyre. Ginny was murdered by Bellatrix, who was, in turn, killed by Mrs. Weasley.

She stared at Voldemort with pure hatred. Hermione wanted him to feel so much pain; but, of course, she'd rather it was over quickly.

"Do you think you can defeat me, Mudblood?" Voldemort taunted her.

"I know, I can, Tom." She answered coolly.

His face contorted in rage at hearing his Muggle name.

"You will regret that, Mudblood. _Avada Kedavra!_" he shouted.

At the same time, Hermione screamed the same curse. _"Avada Kedavra!_"

And that was how Voldemort was killed, with his own rebounding curse. That was when Hermione understood the significance of disarming Harry. She had become the rightful owner of the Elder Wand. The only surviving member of the Golden Trio bent down and pried the wand from Voldemort. Instantly, she felt warmth fill her.

As soon as people realized what happened, they flocked Hermione with hugs and kisses, some even trying to touch her as if she were a good luck charm. She managed to get away from the crowd and approach Harry's body.

It then occurred to her how peaceful Harry looked in death. He never got to enjoy his childhood. From a kid, he'd been groomed to be the Wizarding World's savior; their sacrifice. She bent down and pressed her lips to his scar.

"I did it, Harry. I did what you asked." She whispered as she clutched his hand. Just as she was leaving, she noticed something poking out of Harry's cloak. She tugged at it.

It was the Invisibility Cloak.

To bring, or not to bring it?

She weighed her options and made up her mind. With one last look at Harry's and Ron's bodies, she put on the Invisibility Cloak and made her way to the Headmaster's office.

As soon as she reached the office, she threw the cloak off and screamed at Dumbledore's portrait.

"Why?" she screeched. "Why did you have to take everyone from me?" she punched the side of his painting.

"My dear…"

"You killed Harry! You killed him! You. Killed. Him!" She continued to pound on his painting. She slid down on the floor and stared down, tears splattering down on the scarlet carpet.

"I regret what happened…but it was for the greater good—"

"FOR THE GREATER GOOD?" she yelled. "Is that all you can think about? The greater good? _Grindelwald_ also thought of the 'greater good'! That didn't justify his decisions!"

Dumbledore sighed. "There is nothing else I can do but offer my sincerest apologies, Ms. Granger. If you are in need of an escape route, check the second drawer to the right of my desk. And I wish you luck." And with that, Dumbledore left his portrait, leaving Hermione alone and confused.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she unlocked the drawer and opened it. Inside it was a beautiful golden compass and a short letter.

_Albus,_

_If you have plucked up your Gryffindor courage and are in need of an adventure, turn the compass and it will bring you somewhere. I cannot tell you where, for even I do not know. But if your curiosity exceeds your fear for the unknown, you may just discover something nobody has. I shall tell you, though, that this device can bend the time-space continuum, meaning it can transport you to a different place, as well as to a different time. Use it well. _

_Gellert _

Hermione wasn't sure which shocked her more: the fact that she held in her hands a device that can take her back in time, or that it was Grindelwald's.

She put the letter down and examined the compass. There was writing on the inside, and it looked to be written in a language Hermione did not know.

_Donijeti mene to mjesto i vrijeme gdje svi Ja sam koji je potreban da bi se i ištanje_

What did it mean? Where would she end up if she spun the needle? She had nothing else left to lose. And she hated how right she was.

With her mind made up, she tucked the invisibility cloak in one of her pockets, and the Elder wand in the other. She inhaled and very slowly, she spun the needle clockwise.

At first, nothing happened, and she sighed in disappointment. Just as she was about to set it down, she felt the familiar feeling of gliding through time using a time turner, accompanied with the jerk-in-the-navel feeling of a portkey. Dust swirled around her and when it had disappeared, so did she.

**A/N: Hi guys! This is going to be my first Tom/Hermione fanfic. :P **

**Liked it? Hated it? Please leave a review! :D**


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